Classy vs. Trashy Cooking...the great dilema

For 2 1/2 years all of my food thoughts were centered around "fast, fun, and affordable meals" thanks to Kelsey's Kitchen. I thought of every way to use a cake mix or a bottle of salad dressing as a shortcut to creating delicious food. Culinary professionals or "foodies" would mostly likely turn their noses up to such recipes. My most recent culinary adventure has been anything but "fast, fun, or affordable." In culinary school most days we cook with ingredients that aren't accessible (or desired) by the everyday cook. Don't get me wrong...the food is fabulous, but not typical food found at the dinner table. I find myself appreciating both ends of the spectrum. I hope to be a professional cook who relates to the person who's never made anything other than macaroni and cheese from a box, but I also hope to be respected within the culinary arts field. I think there is definitely a balance between the two worlds of classy vs. trashy cooking, and it's my culinary mission to find it.

This is one of my favorite recipes for this time of year. I took these pumpkin chocolate chip cookies with me to class today and my chef was insistant that I provide him with the recipe. I was hesitant because of the nature of the recipe...but after he downed 3 cookies before 7 AM, I thought I'd share my "not so classy" recipe with him regardless of the ingredients.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 box spice cake mix
1 (14.5 oz) can pumpkin
1 bag chocolate chips

Mix cake mix and pumpkin together until light and fluffy. Stir in chocolate chips. Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes.

*Note* These cookies have no butter or oil, so feel free to have as many as your heart desires. Who is really counting calories anyway...right?